I've never been to a comic convention. It's never been a real goal of mine (not that big a fan of crowds), but if the opportunity arose and it wasn't too much of an effort to get there, I'd go, and I've always assumed I'd enjoy it.
Then I read this. Now, as I'm sure you all can guess given that I have a teenage daughter, I am a middle-aged woman--albeit, presumably, a "useful" one according to the standards of the post because I have children and am probably still technically capable of doing so again, late menopause running in my family and all that. I'm also quite polite as a matter of course, and cannot imagine doing anything like the outrageous behavior the poster describes. So I know that I'm not who he is talking about.
But now I'm wondering whether, if the stars align correctly and I ever manage to make it to a comic convention, my behavior is going to be judged more harshly than other con-goers because I'm not as ornamental as I was twenty years ago.
Of course it's not all great on the other side of the fence, either. I've been the young woman in a group mostly made up of men as well, and the attention you get in that situation isn't universally positive either. People make allowances for things they really shouldn't, praise you for things that really don't deserve it, etc. I suppose this is just the opposite side of that coin.
3 comments:
I haven't been to a Con in a long time, but I still get visually appraised whenever I walk into a comic book shop -- usually by guys my own age these days. The younger guys usually don't give me a second glance. They probably think I'm there to shop for my kids or something (though Mighty Mite is still a tad too young for comic books, except as teething material. ;->)
It's infuriating isn't it? While the woman he described behavior was indeed outrageous, how in the world did he KNOW that she was unmarried and postmenopausal and therefore a blight on the landscape? Or, did he simply infer that she was unattractive and therefore of no use whatsoever?
I know nothing about the blogger except what he has written, but I'm pretty sure that he's not someone I'd like to get to know any better.
Well, I'm middle aged (55), menopausal (finally, nearly free!), have no kids, and at best, am average looking. I go to the NYComicon. I used to go to Creation Con and the old Phil Seuling Comic Arts Convention, back when I was a young woman and not menopausal. Of course, then I was likely to be PMS and even more irritable. I ever run into this jerk at a con, I'd have to fight the urge to shove an action figure up his butt. Then again, he seems like he's already rather blocked up as it is, so no need to add to his woes.
Sheesh. Rudeness comes in all sizes, shapes, and from both sexes. I think he just proved that.
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